


Lemon drops & dandelions

by Yalys (MoiMoi)



Category: A3! (Video Game)
Genre: Established Relationship, First Time, Fluff, M/M, stayover date
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-10
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-17 02:29:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,499
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29959608
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MoiMoi/pseuds/Yalys
Summary: Sequel to A Clockwork Heartache (tho can be read separately~) ((https://archiveofourown.org/works/23871541))Tsuzuru and Mizuno have been dating for a while now, but they've never spent the night together. Mizuno lives with his parents, and the mankai dorms don't give that much privacy... so finally they decide to go on a little trip.Tags and rating will be adjusted as chapters are added - fair warning, the next chapter will be NSFW but I'll make it skippable!
Relationships: Minagi Tsuzuru/Mizuno Kaya
Comments: 2
Kudos: 5





	Lemon drops & dandelions

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Neyumo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Neyumo/gifts).



Three months had passed since Tsuzuru had sneaked his way into Mizuno Enterprise. Three months since he and Mizuno had started dating. Mizuno had insisted on keeping things private, which Tsuzuru reluctantly agreed to. He wasn’t fond of their secret meetings and out-of-the-open dates, but Mizuno was terrified of being seen by someone from his work and the consequences if word got out that he was dating a man.  _ Oh, the shame.  _

In all honesty, it was annoying, but Tsuzuru had hope that Mizuno would one day shake off his family’s influence and do as he pleased. Wasn’t it way too old-fashioned to get married off within wealthy families? Couldn’t Mizuno date whomever he liked? It seemed so unfair, but it was a world too different from his own, and he didn’t want to play into Mizuno’s uncertainty, so he put up with the hiding.    
  
At least they could be together at the Mankai dorms, where everyone knew about their relationship.And in the end, Tsuzuru loved Mizuno with all his heart, and Mizuno adored Tsuzuru just as much. 

Three months after short dates, they were finally talking about going somewhere together, and staying the night.

“I would really like that,” Tsuzuru said, “but I don’t have much money to spare.”

Mizuno shook his head. “We can stay at my family’s vacation house, we have one in Karuizawa and Okinawa.” 

“Mizunooo,” Tsuzuru grumbled, looking dissatisfied. “I don’t want it all to be on you.”

“Hmm, but, it’s just a vacation house! Why should you pay for a hotel if you can stay somewhere for free… What if we go to Karuizawa and we go by train or bus? Then it feels more like travelling and you can pay for your own fee. How is that?”

Tsuzuru frowned, but Mizuno had a point. “All right, we can stay at your vacation house. I’m going to check the trains and busses then.”

Mizuno nodded, scooting closer to Tsuzuru to look at his phone as well. Obviously going by bus was cheaper than taking the bullet train, so they decided to go with that, and Tsuzuru booked the tickets. He sighed and put his phone down. 

“Tsuzuru-kun?” Mizuno’s blue eyes showed concern.

“Sorry, it’s nothing. I gotta stop worrying over things.”

“What are you worried about?”    
  
Mizuno took Tsuzuru’s hand, gently squeezing. Tsuzuru looked at him with an expression between fondness and concern. 

“A lot of things… the theater, school work, my part time job… and you, Mizuno.”

Mizuno gave him a sad smile. “I keep telling you, you really worry too much. Everything will be fine, you’ll be away for one night, and knowing you, you’ll be able to finish whatever you must do before we leave.”

“You’re right… then that leaves… you.”    
  
Tsuzuru turned to his boyfriend, and grinned a little. “We’ll be all alone, you know? Spend the night…”

“I know that,” Mizuno replied, blushing a little.

“Good.”    
  
Tsuzuru lifted his free hand to cup Mizuno’s face and kissed him, once, twice. Mizuno’s lips were so soft and pliant, the space between them luring Tsuzuru in as he deepened the kiss, inviting Mizuno to follow suit. 

Mizuno tasted like lemon drops. The young man had admitted that he had a habit of using lemon-flavoured breath drops after eating. Tsuzuru had found it funny and terribly cute, and liked to tease him about it. But god, he loved the taste of Mizuno’s mouth, the feeling of his tongue against his own.

They let go simultaneously, in harmony, like practiced dancers, and gazed breathlessly at each other.    
  
“I don’t think I’ll be able to hold back,” Tsuzuru said, as a warning.   
  
“...I don’t think I want you to,” Mizuno replied, his voice steady.

  
  


\--

Saturday morning, Tsuzuru got off the train at Shinjuku station. He still had more than thirty minutes before the bus departure, and had agreed to meet Mizuno in the lobby of the bus station. Before he made it there, he received a text message.

<I’m almost there!>

Tsuzuru smiled. He knew Mizuno was also coming by train. Which was rare for him, since he usually had either a driver or came by taxi. He probably just wanted to show Tsuzuru that he could do these things by himself too. And maybe Mizuno was curious that way, just like when he was a kid and was really interested in the things that were different in the large and messy Minagi household.

Tsuzuru was feeling generous (and worried, because Shinjuku station is huge), so he sent a message back.

<I just got here! I’ll give you a hint. Take the south exit or you’ll end up having to walk pretty far.>

He immediately got an answer.   
  
<Got it. Thank you <3 >

A few minutes later, Tsuzuru arrived at the entrance to the bus station lobby, and wondered if he should just wait there. He checked the time and decided to stay there for a bit. Soon after he received another message.

<I may be lost…>   
<Don’t be mad :( >

Tsuzuru sighed, letting his head droop down, but then pressed ‘call’.

“Mizuno?”

“Tsuzuru-kun, I’m so sorry.”

“Where are you now?”

“Uhm… I don’t know. I couldn’t find any signs pointing to the bus station.”

“Hmm, I can’t really tell you where to go either… Are you out of the station?”

“Yes… there’s shops here, it’s not a very wide street. It’s okay, Tsuzuru-kun. I’ll ask someone.”

“Okay then, see you soon.”

Tsuzuru sighed again. He was a little worried, but at the same time impressed that Mizuno was really venturing out and even asking people for help. Wait, what was he? A proud parent? The guy is an adult. He’s got a management function at work - sure, it’s a family corporation, but still. There was no reason why Mizuno wouldn’t be able to get by on his own.

Almost ten more minutes passed, and Tsuzuru was getting a little antsy. They still had twenty minutes before departure, so it was no big deal, but he hoped Mizuno would find his way there soon. He’d checked where their bus would leave from and had the tickets on his phone. They just needed to board, is all. Then he finally got another message.

<Found it! I’m almost there.>

Relieved, Tsuzuru put his phone away again, on the lookout for Mizuno within the people trickling into the bus station. Soon after, he spotted him and waved.

“I’m so sorry,” Mizuno said, panting slightly. He must have hurried, and come from pretty far away.    
  
Tsuzuru shook his head.“I’m glad you made it. There’s still time, we can easily make it. Do you need something from here?” He pointed at the convenience store.

“No, I’ve brought something.” There was some hint of pride in his voice that didn’t escape Tsuzuru. It made him smile, and he wanted to pat Mizuno’s head and tell him what a good boy he was, but  _ obviously _ he couldn’t pull that off in public without making Mizuno blush.   
  
“All right, let’s go to the platform then. It’s 7C, which is…” He checked the arrows on the floor. “This way.”   
  
They still had some time to wait, so they sat down on a bench. Tsuzuru finally took the time to look at Mizuno. He was wearing creased slacks in taupe and a medium blue slightly oversized shirt. It suited him really well, as usual. Tsuzuru often thought that Mizuno’s clothes were carefully selected. He was undeniably the more fashionable of the two.    
  
Meanwhile he was just wearing a pair of light blue jeans and a striped t-shirt. Casual with a capital C, just like his jeans and hoodie combinations. His black cap was clipped onto the handle of his backpack. Then he noticed Mizuno’s travel bag. It was a large weekend bag, and it looked like it was quite full.   
  
“Dude why did you bring so much stuff?” No wonder he was tired if he’d been dragging all that around.    


“Huh? Oh! Is it a lot? I brought a change of clothes, and a jacket, and an extra pair of shoes, my pajamas…”    
  
Tsuzuru laughed, making Mizuno pout. This happened often enough, so neither of them felt any awkwardness about it anymore. It was just that they were so different sometimes.

“You don’t need that much…” Tsuzuru continued, still chuckling.    
  
“You never know,” Mizuno objected stubbornly. “I could spill food on my clothes, it might get cold, and if we’re going on a long walk, I need better shoes…” 

Tsuzuru couldn’t help himself, he briefly touched Mizuno’s arm and leaned in closely to whisper in his ear.   
  
“You’re so cute.”    
  
Mizuno didn’t pull away, but he mumbled something, his cheeks faintly pink.   
  
Their bus arrived, and Tsuzuru pulled back. He picked up his backpack and got up. Mizuno followed him, and because of the size of his bag, he put it in the trunk room, while Tsuzuru could easily stow away his backpack in the overhead storage on the bus.

Since it was a weekend, the bus was pretty full with people going out into the mountains. Karuizawa was famous for its nature as well as a cooler temperature in summer. Tsuzuru had never been there before, but it seemed nice, and since it was getting hotter, going out to a cooler area would be refreshing.

“Have you been to Karuizawa often?” Tsuzuru asked, assuming that since they had a vacation house there, it would have been really easy to go whenever they wanted.

“Hmm,” Mizuno needed some time to think. “Not recently, I did go there frequently when I was young, since my grandparents would be there for the entire summer period, and they would take care of me during summer holidays.”

“You spent your entire summer holidays out there?” Tsuzuru was surprised. As much as it did make sense, it seemed sort of… boring.

“Yes. I didn’t dislike it… My grandmother was really kind, and I liked reading. Besides, I’d gotten so used to playing by myself that I didn’t need other kids to enjoy myself, and…”   
  
Mizuno’s expression darkened. “I wasn’t any good at making friends anyway. As you know.”

“Sorry.” Tsuzuru took hold of Mizuno’s hand. No one on the bus would see it if they held their hands between themselves. 

“It’s okay. I wish I had been better at it, but then again there may not have been a point.”

Tsuzuru could tell regret lingered in Mizuno’s voice as he said these things about his childhood. He couldn’t understand the way Mizuno’s parents thought, and didn’t understand it even up to this point. And also, why would you send your child to a regular school if he wasn’t allowed to play with regular poor kids. It made no sense. But he didn’t tell Mizuno that.

“I’m glad I was your friend,” he said. Even if it was short.

Mizuno nodded. “You’re my saviour, Tsuzuru-kun. You gave me so much that I never had.”

“And you’re incredibly sappy and I love you,” Tsuzuru softly told him. 

Mizuno smiled. It was comfortable and warm on the bus, and after a long stretch of silence, the young man had dozed off. Tsuzuru had been looking out of the window, until he felt a weight against him. Mizuno was sound asleep, his head resting against Tsuzuru’s shoulder. He looked utterly at peace, his mouth slightly opened, and his chest heaving slowly with his sleepy breaths.

Tsuzuru returned to looking outside, but found himself dozing off as well.    
  
Almost three hours later they arrived at Karuizawa station. The scenery had completely changed from in the city, and they were now at the foot of Mt. Azama, a less famous little brother of Mt. Fuji. It was still warm, but the air smelled of greenery. 

“Okay, so how do we get to your vacation house?” Tsuzuru hadn’t worried about it, specifically because Mizuno told him not to, but he’d never given any details.

“We drive,” Mizuno said plainly, but with a grin.

“Eh? By taxi?” Taxi’s were expensive… they’d end up paying double the price of their bus trip there to go a small distance by taxi.

“I’ll drive. Let’s go rent a car.” Mizuno nodded towards a car rental office. 

“Oh. You have a license. I always forget you do... But why, you hardly ever need it.” Tsuzuru spluttered. Damn, Mizuno could be so cool sometimes. 

Mizuno shrugged. “I was told to get one, so I did. Comes in handy, right?”

Tsuzuru followed him sheepishly. Whenever Mizuno got like this, he got overwhelmed by a silly feeling of frustration as well as the strong urge to kiss him right then and there. His cute, adorable Mizuno had no business being so mature and dependable… but Tsuzuru loved it.

Mizuno filled out the necessary forms, and received the key to one of the small models they had available for rent. The rental fee wasn’t exactly cheap, but it would give them all the freedom of movement they needed during their stay. After all, this wasn’t the city. One look at a map would suffice to tell you that. 

Mizuno got into the driver’s seat and Tsuzuru in shotgun.    
  
“Hmm… better use the navigation, I don’t think I remember the road,” Mizuno mumbled, tapping on the screen of the built-in navigation system. Tsuzuru observed quietly, impressed at how calm and collected Mizuno was through all this. He gave off the impression of someone who’d been doing this every day.

“You’re amazing,” Tsuzuru said softly, as they drove off.

“Really? I can drive a car, like a whole lot of people,” Mizuno said, brushing off the compliment. 

“That’s not it… not really. You  _ are _ amazing, Mizuno.”

Mizuno smiled. “Thank you. You are too, Tsuzuru-kun. Amazing and talented.”

Tsuzuru said a word of thanks, then looked around at the scenery they were driving through. They quickly left the central town behind and drove up a road lined with trees, then uphill on a winding road for a while. They passed some other villa’s and large cottages that definitely gave off that wealthy vacation house feel. 

On the road, he saw a sign advertising the location of a convenience store.

“Oh, we should probably get some stuff,” Tsuzuru said.   
  
Mizuno nodded, and followed the directions of the sign and smoothly pulled up into the parking lot. They bought drinks, snacks and things for breakfast. They expected to be out for lunch - which they would like to get soon- and for dinner.

They reached the vacation house within another ten minutes’ drive. Tsuzuru carried both of their luggage while Mizuno carried the shopping bags and dug into his pocket for the key to the house. The vacation house was built in a western style, much like other houses they’d seen before, and it was - at least to Tsuzuru - huge.    
  
There was so much stuff inside too, especially for a vacation house. Who needed two sets of drawers in the entrance hall? There was a TV in the kitchen and in the living room, a cozy veranda, and everything was so spacious that Tsuzuru didn’t know where to go. Mizuno gave him a quick tour, also to check up on the place.    
  
There was a master bedroom on the first floor as well, with a private bathroom. Upstairs there was a larger bathroom with a large tub, and three additional bedrooms plus a study/library full of old books.

The whole house was too big for Tsuzuru to be entirely comfortable, but he didn’t want to upset Mizuno by mentioning it. Maybe he’d get used to it. Mizuno was looking at him with a sort of expectant face when they had seen the whole house.

“It’s huge,” he said. “And cleaner than I thought it would be, if it’s not used often.”

Mizuno smiled apologetically. “Ah, well, it gets cleaned every two weeks, I think. It would get very dusty otherwise.”

Ah, of course these rich people wouldn’t let their vacation homes be victim to dust and dirt. It made sense. He just couldn’t imagine it, is all.

They put their drinks and other things that needed to stay cool into the fridge after turning it on, took whatever they needed for the rest of their day out, and headed back to the car.   
  
“What would you like to get for lunch?” Mizuno asked, as they drove off.

“Hmm…” Tsuzuru didn’t have anything off the top of his head, but then he remembered reading about Nagano prefecture being known for its soba noodles.

“How about some cold soba?”

“Oh, great idea,” Mizuno answered, “I know just the place, too.”

Mizuno drove them to a soba restaurant that wasn’t in the center of town. He explained that he went there a lot with his grandparents, and because it was kind of close to the vacation house, he knew the way by heart. 

It was a seemingly well-known spot, which meant they had to wait for a bit before they could be seated. Since they had already decided, they ordered immediately, and soon after the server brought two trays to their table. Tsuzuru had taken regular cold soba with dipping sauce, while Mizuno went with the oroshi soba.

During lunch, Tsuzuru opened up a travel guide web page to check what they would do during the rest of the trip. 

“You should decide what you want to do,” Mizuno had said, “I’ve been here often enough.”

“Well, yeah but still, I want to have fun with you… so if there’s something you’d like to do, I’d rather do that.”

Mizuno gave him a soft knowing smile. “You’re still stubborn in your kindness huh? Then please let me indulge and let’s go to the shopping plaza tomorrow before heading back home.”

Tsuzuru looked at the info on the outlet mall on his phone. So many high end brand stores…    
“Sure, why not. You need something?”

“Well, we never got to getting me a hoodie yet, right?”

“You can steal mine. As you already do,” Tsuzuru added with the slightest hint of a blush.

Mizuno himself blushed harder. “Well...yes…”

Tsuzuru laughed a bit. Mizuno was so easy to tease, and so very cute. “All right, we’ll do that then, let’s get you a hoodie. As for the rest… since we have a car, we can go look at the waterfall, and visit the central town? Maybe go for a walk somewhere...”

“Sounds good to me,” Mizuno agreed.

They decided to go to the waterfall after lunch, since it would be easier to go that way first, and then visit the old center of the town, and have dinner there. The evening would be spent at the vacation house, just relaxing. Excited and happy about their plans, they left the soba noodle place and got to the car.

“I hadn’t actually thought about getting around as much,” Tsuzuru admitted while they were on their way, but as it turned out it would not have been easy to see the waterfall by depending on public transport.

“It’s all right,” Mizuno said with a bit of a laugh. “I told you to leave the whole vacation house to me, didn’t I?”   


“I guess you did,” Tsuzuru replied, but he really was thinking about how cool and dependable Mizuno was. Having a car proved to be almost a necessity now, unlike when you could just walk to the station, get on a train or a bus and again walk to where you needed to be, or use a bicycle… But here in the mountains that wasn’t an option at all.

“Thanks for driving,” Tsuzuru said when they arrived. He shivered briefly, it was really cooler here, higher up the mountain.

“No problem. Don’t you dare try to thank me somehow, you owe me nothing.” Mizuno locked the door to the car and put a thin blazer on. “Let’s go.”

The parking lot (just space on the side of the road, actually), was near a spot marked with a huge sign pointing towards the Shiraito waterfall. There were more tourists here, and a few blockhut style shops with food and souvenirs lined up alongside the road. Beside the path, a creek that came from the waterfall flowed at high speed.

The whole ground seemed eternally wet, and as they approached the waterfall, it became obvious why. 

“Oh, it’s a source,” they heard a girl say. They turned to see an information sign. 

The waterfall didn’t flow from an existing river, the water came streaming out of the ground itself, more wide than high, and had created a small lake. The meaning of its name, ‘white thread’, also became clear. The whole waterfall was just a wide range of water dripping and streaming down, in some places indeed like white threads.

“Sorry, I should have told you to bring a jacket,” Mizuno said, seeing Tsuzuru shiver again.

He shook his head. “No it’s alright, we didn’t know we were coming here when we left.”

“It’s cooler here because of the waterfall,” Mizuno explained. And true enough, on the far left side you could hold your hand under the dripping source water, and as mountain springs go, it was pretty cold. 

“Okay, time to take some pictures then.” Tsuzuru took his phone out and snapped some shots of the lake and the waterfall, of the ground dripping with cool spring water, and of the surrounding area. 

“Mizuno…” Tsuzuru normally didn’t take selfies. He left that up to Miyoshi-san, who was also far better at it. But this was a special occasion, so he wanted one of the two of them.

“All right then…” Mizuno wasn’t a big fan either, but he stood next to Tsuzuru and smiled at the lens. He even ended up taking one as well. 

“I’d be happy just having your picture,” he said, blushing slightly.   
  
“Then…” Tsuzuru scratched the back of his head. He didn’t like modelling, even if he had gotten a bit more used to it when it was for costume shoots. Yet if it was for Mizuno...    
“Why don’t you take one.”   
  
“Can I?”    
  
Tsuzuru swore he could see Mizuno’s blue eyes sparkle. God, he was too cute, it wasn’t fair. He nodded, but didn’t know what pose to take, so he just made a stupid generic peace sign. Mizuno seemed happy enough with it, looking at his screen with childish happiness.

“One more!” He said, coming closer.

“You don’t need a close up…” Tsuzuru protested, but it was already too late.

Mizuno showed him the picture, it was just him with a slight frown and his mouth a little open. Tsuzuru sighed. 

“It’s a terrible picture.”

“It’s not. I love it.”

“Fine, you love it.” Tsuzuru sounded grumpy, but his eyes were smiling.

Mizuno hummed and put his phone back in his pocket. 

Looking around, at all the greenery and breathing in the cool air, Tsuzuru could understand why people would come here in summer to escape some of that summer heat that beat down on the city. Next to the chatter of the tourists, you could also hear birds chirping amidst the gentle rush of water from the waterfall.

After just taking in the surroundings a bit longer, they returned to the car and drove to the center of the town. Since it was already relatively late in the afternoon, they just walked through the old shopping street, checked out some of the local specialties and gazed at the shops and restaurants. 

They contemplated getting ice cream, but skipped it in favor of dinner and possibly late night snacks that they got, although it was very tempting. Instead they took a break and had a drink at a cute café with a terrace. 

After walking back, and buying some souvenirs for everyone at Mankai, they checked some tourist map for places to eat dinner. Tsuzuru had his phone out as well to read reviews online, and he found a burger place that made his eyes light up.

“Look, this is getting rave reviews online,” he said, showing Mizuno the website.

“Burgers? Huh…”

“You don’t like burgers?” Tsuzuru asked with a bit of concern in his voice. He was already craving a good hamburger, with potato wedges and thick grilled onion slices…

“Uhm… I’ve never had them,” Mizuno admitted shyly. 

Tsuzuru’s eyes widened. “Well then, let’s change that. They’re a bit messy to eat but honestly great if done well.”

Mizuno nodded, smiling a little at the other’s enthusiasm.    
  
“Hmm, we can walk there. Shall we do that?”

“Yes, sure.”

They set off, the sun was slowly sinking, disappearing behind the mountain earlier than it would in the city. The road they walked was emptier too, so Tsuzuru felt confident enough to reach out and hold Mizuno’s hand as they walked. A sideways glance told him the other was blushing a bit.

“Thanks,” Tsuzuru whispered to him.

“W-what for?”

“Letting me hold your hand.”

Mizuno’s blush became a bit deeper. “I… I think it’s okay here.” He looked down, as he continued. “I’m sorry I have such a hard time with this…”

“It’s okay,” Tsuzuru said immediately. He already knew that Mizuno struggled with these things since his parents had been so strict about how he presented himself to the outside world. He didn’t like most of it, but in order to be with him, Tsuzuru would gladly sacrifice some freedom. 

So it was only when Mizuno was comfortable enough with it that they got to do anything like hold hands in public, but most of the time, and anything more intimate, had to happen in private. Not that it was strange for these things to be private, but Tsuzuru himself didn’t mind much and enjoyed showing affection.

“Tsuzuru-kun…”

“Hmm?”

“You’ve always shown me a different world...I wish... “ Mizuno took a break, thinking, doubting. “I wish I were stronger, so I could let you into my life more.”

Tsuzuru smiled, even if there was a hint of sadness in it.

“Don’t be silly, I’m plenty happy, and we’ve got time to get used to all this. You’ve got time to figure things out.”

They walked on in silence, both of them mulling over their own thoughts. Tsuzuru didn’t like that Mizuno kept their relationship secret, but he understood why he did. He knew that if they kept dating long enough, something would have to change, and he was definitely willing to fight for the man he loved. 

  
During dinner, their usual cheer returned over the (actually delicious) burgers they got, and stuffed but satisfied, they returned back to their rental car. Before they left, Mizuno popped a lemon drop in his mouth and offered one to Tsuzuru. He took it with a ‘thanks’ and wondered if Mizuno would appreciate him copying that habit. But maybe it didn’t really matter.   
  
Tsuzuru found himself quietly admiring Mizuno’s calmness while driving, and enjoyed the drive as well, not talking much as to not distract the driver, and just because words weren’t always necessary. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, this has been in my WIPs for SO long you won't even believe it. After all, Clockwork Heartache was my first A3 fic on here and I love tsuzumizu so much QAQ
> 
> (beb, this one is for you. My lovely Mizuno(kinnie) <3 )


End file.
